ABSTRACT
Science teaches us that deer do not control their own numbers, at least not until density is so high that deer eliminate forage and contribute to their own starvation deaths. Science has also established that one of the natural brakes on deer density increase is persistent predation by a suite of large predators such as mountain lions, wolves, bears, and Native Americans. The onslaught of development of the country was partially enhanced by elimination of these predators, including Native Americans, by the turn of the twentieth century. The primary mortality factors since then have been coyotes, bears, and modern deer hunting. The majority of eliminated major predators cannot be recovered by reintroduction, so mortality by hunting remains increasingly important for keeping deer density at levels associated with sustainable production of forest resources.
